Aussie-land

So... I promised some people that I would update the blog with lots of pictures, partially to get me out of doing a lot of writing. Unfortunately the internet here at the Center is too slow and spotty to upload many pictures, so here I am writing : )

The School for Field Studies (out of Boston University) is in charge of my study abroad program, in far north Queensland, Australia called the Center for Rainforest Studies. We are located smack in the middle of a World Heritage protected Wet Tropics Rainforest, which means that we are very isolated. The nearest town/neighbors are twenty minutes away, and the nearest large city in Cairns (Cans) reachable only by a crazy snaking highway.

There are 29 other students in my program and we live in 4 8 person cabins spread over a walking trail, about a 5-10 minute walk from the main building which houses the offices of our professors and staff, the kitchen, the common room, computer room, and classroom. The 3-sided porch has our eating area, sitting area, ping pong, pool and laundry. It seems a little primitive and campy at first glance, but we do have a television, wireless internet (when it doesn't rain too hard) and a snack fridge.

As far a school goes, it is going to very, very intense. We have three courses stuffed into two months (the last month is research) and we have classes 6 days a week. Then again, class includes a lot of hikes and field lectures so I won't be trapped in a classroom.

So far we've been going through a lot of safety and emergency materials. Not only does it rain almost all of the time, but we have to be on the lookout for poisonous snakes. I've already seen a pandemelon (a rainforest mini-kangaroo) that hopped across my path in the middle of the night. Once we start going out and about, I'll do more specific updates. Cheers!